Trustees dispute research on codes of conduct

The B.C. School Trustees’ Association (BCSTA) is disputing research by Glen Hansman that found only 10 of 60 school districts have complied with the law about codes of conduct in schools. (See the Sun story from Monday’s paper.) BCSTA president Connie Denesiuk says a 2007 audit found that almost all districts had fully met the ministry’s requirements and the last few were in the process of doing so. “The emotional and physical safety of students is of paramount importance to BC’s Boards of Education and many have had codes in place that met the standards well before the Ministry requirements were established in 2007,” she wrote in a letter to the Sun.

Hansman, head of the Vancouver Elementary School Teachers’ Association (VESTA), responded by saying his information is based on requests he made under the Freedom of Information Act asking boards to provide records showing compliance with a ministerial order dated November 2007.

Only a fraction of districts did so, he added.

While saying he doesn’t know the date of the 2007 audit, he wonders if it was done based on codes of conduct completed prior to the November ministerial order. “I suspect that they were, given that I am aware that Vancouver schools were asked toward the end of 2006 to provide the Board with updated codes of conduct,” he says in an email to the BCSTA.

Hansman wrote to Education Minister Shirley Bond on July 3 to tell her about his findings before going public but says she didn’t respond. He says he would welcome any additional information from school districts about codes of conduct but notes they were required under the Freedom of Information law to provide such information in response to his initial request.

Comments

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.